Sheryl Lee Ralph, 11/30/11

Original Dreamgirl

Thirty years ago on Broadway, AIDS was killing my friends in silence and shame. Thirty years later AIDS is still killing people around the world in silence and shame with stigma still holding them hostage.

David Leddick, 11/30/11

Writer, playwright, and actor; author, 'How to Be Gay in the 21st Century'

"Being gay is just like being Swedish. It's a little different, but in no important way." That's what I thought in 2005, as I was beginning to get a grip on what it is like to be gay in the 21st century. It's all so very different now.

Steven Petrow, 11/29/11

Past President, National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association

Your parents think you're straight and are visiting for the holidays with a buddy -- not a boyfriend. Now, at the last minute, you'd like to change it up a little and come out to them.

Wayne Besen, 11/29/11

Founder, Truth Wins Out

Homophobia is a mark of failing nations. Even in America, it is the emblem of poor, second-tier states. It is the signpost of inferior cities that perpetually fail to reach their potential and can't figure out why.

Valerie Keefe, 11/29/11

Writer, activist, candidate, unpaid political consultant, service-sector prole and general nuisance

What if the Civil Rights Act had specifically permitted segregation, and specified, in detail, how government and business could legally discriminate on the basis of race? That's what Barney Frank's bathroom compromises amounted to.

Chris Stedman, 11/29/11

Author, Humanist Chaplaincy at Harvard Fellow and founder, State of Formation

In the year and a half following the release of his debut solo album, Queen of Denmark, Grant's whole world changed. After struggling to make it as a musician for almost two decades, he suddenly found himself topping critics' lists.

Alex Chapman, 11/29/11

Writer and NYU student

A member of Odd Future, DJ Syd Tha Kid, and a close affiliate, Matt Martians, have momentarily branched out with a side-project aptly titled The Internet, an amalgamation of Syd's sultry coo and the duo's funk-tinged production and poignant lyrics.

Stephen Winter, 11/29/11

Film producer

I want Viola as a new level of Jane Fonda and Vanessa Redgrave gay icon. She can play any kind of person you want, 'cause no matter what, she will make it real, but she also can't help but make it diva.

Charles Stephens, 11/29/11

Project specialist, AID Atlanta; coordinator, 'From Where I Stand'

It is impossible to discuss HIV/AIDS in the black community without addressing the importance of tolerance. It is up to us -- relatives, co-workers and friends -- to engage our black gay brothers in a conversation that is constructive and rooted in concern.

Leslie Gabel-Brett, 11/29/11

Director of Education and Public Affairs, Lambda Legal

Every time people watch peaceful protesters getting pepper-sprayed or hear that an Occupy protester suffered brain damage and almost died after being shot with a rubber bullet, more become fearful of exercising their rights.

Waymon Hudson, 11/29/11

LGBT rights activist

In a big reversal from the Illinois Department of Revenue, couples who have entered into civil unions will be able to jointly file their 2011 state tax returns.

Jayson Littman, 11/28/11

Founder, He'bro

I was saddened to learn about a top-secret Declaration currently being passed confidentially among Orthodox Jewish rabbis, entitled, "Torah Declaration, Petition, re: The Torah Stance on Homosexuality." The full text of this Declaration is posted here.

Laurence Watts, 11/28/11

Freelance journalist and founding member, Servicemembers United's Campaign for Military Partners

Unless gay men and women reengage themselves with U.S. politics, they could face an unfriendly president and Senate after November 2012, just when key gay rights cases arrive at the U.S. Supreme Court.

Robert Levithan, 11/28/11

Psychotherapist, writer and expert on living with illness

A couple of weeks ago, a charming man on Facebook suggested that we meet for a drink, and I accepted. That drink turned into an instant committed relationship. Why am I surprised that now we are discussing what went awry?